Solar Punch

solar punch uses solar energy and music to help spread positive ideas about renewable energy, environmental awareness and climate action.

we work with education, environment, science and ecology groups to deliver our music and spread our message.

The music is about the environment and our future; the message is that solutions to climate change are here now - solar punch* is living proof - we use relatively simple solar technology to power our small, powerful, portable amps...

alan bigelow purchased his first solar panel from our solar associate scott gibson at the great hudson river revival / clearwater festival 2007. james dean conklin followed suit a month later and by the end of the summer, solar punch was gigging with live, available sunlight at environmental awareness events and local farmer's markets.

all of this born from seeds planted by our fellow musician and activist friend t.h. culhane & his brother michael...

james and alan have worked with culhane's band circus guy in 2004, 2005 and 2006 (in egypt, kuwait and morocco) doing similar environmental mission work in foreign countries, with music as the medium to spread the message about climate change, environmental awareness and climate solutions.

James and alan agreed they would continue the mission back home in some form - a couple years later, with their thin-film solar technology in place, the two felt they could entertain and educate using only solar-energy to power amplifiers and gadgets - and power their environmental message and mission.

we're passionate about the environment and happy that we can engage the environmental movement in this way.

our just finished tour of india, in support and with the support of the climate solutions road tour group and the indian youth climate network; a keen example of where we will go, how far we need to go, in order to understand the issues we sing and rant about. getting to see these lands, the people of the country, the minds behind these innovations and motivations was all the more reason to thank the team that got us there - the climate solutions road tour put solar punch more distinctly in touch with its music, goals, message and methods!

india was a dramatic demonstration of how simple, ancient techniques - including centuries old ideas in urban planning, architecture, farming, pesticides, crop irrigation - as well as recent advances in solar concentrators, bio-gas production, solar entrepreneurship - all continue to be logical, practical, effective solutions to help mitigate the production and use of fossil-fuels.

we're excited to bring what we've learned from it all to new york and beyond as we play as many shows as we can this coming sun season in the greater tri-state area. videos and photo galleries will be available that more clearly demonstrate some specific clues we brought back as regards climate solutions and what people are doing right now to deal with it.

Our understanding of solar technology, its limits and benefits, has developed as well as our set of sun-themed music - we'll keep looking for effective improvements and innovations in the portable renewable energy field...

One of the best affects of our shows is the interaction we have had with the curious > young and old are all very interested to understand how our solar stuff works.